tow LEXUS RX450h 2015 User Guide

1421-8. Safety information
CAUTION■
SRS airbag precautions ●
Do not sit on the edge of the seat or lean
against the dashboard.
●
Do not allow a child to stand in front of the
SRS front passenger ai rbag unit or sit on
the knees of a front passenger. ●
Do not allow the front seat occupants to
hold items on their knees.
●
Do not lean against the door, the roof side
rail or the front, side and rear pillars.
●
Do not allow anyone to kneel on the pas-
senger seats toward the door or put their
head or hands outside the vehicle.

When driving
2
1652-1. Driving procedures
Driving the vehicle.................. 166
Power (ignition) switch .......... 177
EV drive mode.......................... 183
Hybrid transmission ............... 186
Turn signal lever ....................... 193
Parking brake ........................... 195
Horn ............................................ 196
2-2. Instrument cluster
Gauges and meters ................ 197
Indicators and warning
lights ......................................... 201
Multi-information display .... 206
Head-up display ...................... 212
2-3. Operating the lights and
windshield wipers
Headlight switch...................... 217
Fog light switch ........................ 221
Windshield wipers and
washer ................................... 223
Rear window wiper and
washer .................................... 229
Headlight cleaner switch...... 231 2-4. Using other driving
systems
Cruise control......................... 232
Dynamic radar cruise
control .................................... 236
Intuitive parking assist .......... 248
Rear view monitor system
(rear view mirror-attached
type) ........................................ 258
Rear view monitor system
(vehicles with the Lexus
Display Audio system) ....... 266
Driving assist systems ............. 271
Hill-start assist control .......... 276
Pre-Collision System ............ 278
BSM
(Blind Spot Monitor) .......... 286
2-5. Driving information
Utility vehicle
precautions ........................... 292
Cargo and luggage ............... 296
Vehicle load limits ................... 301
Winter driving tips ................. 302
Tr a i l e r t o w i n g ( AW D m o d e l s
with towing package)......... 306
Trailer towing (without
towing package).................. 323
Dinghy towing ......................... 324

1672-1. Driving procedures
2
When driving ■
When starting off on an uphill
The hill-start assist control is available. (  P. 2 76 )■
Driving in the rain ●
Drive carefully when it is raining, becaus e visibility will be reduced, the windows
may become fogged-up, and the road will be slippery.●
Drive carefully when it starts to rain, be cause the road surface will be especially
slippery.●
Refrain from high speeds when driving on an expressway in the rain, because
there may be a layer of water between th e tires and the road surface, preventing
the steering and brakes from operating properly.■
Engine speed while driving
In the following conditions, the engine speed may become high while driving. This is
due to automatic up-shifting control or down-shifting implementation to meet driv-
ing conditions. It does not indicate sudden acceleration.●
The vehicle is judged to be driving uphill or downhill●
When the accelerator pedal is released●
When the brake pedal is depresse d while sport mode is selected■
Breaking in your new Lexus
To extend the life of the vehicle, observing the following precautions is recom-
mended: ●
For the first 200 miles (300 km):
Avoid sudden stops.●
For the first 500 miles (800 km):
Do not tow a trailer.●
For the first 1000 miles (1600 km):
• Do not drive at extremely high speeds.
• Avoid sudden acceleration.
• Do not drive continuously in low gears.
• Do not drive at a constant speed for extended periods.

1902-1. Driving procedures
Changing shift ranges in S mode
When the shift lever is in the S position, the shift lever can be operated as
follows:
Upshifting
Downshifting
The initial shift range in S mode is set automatically to “5” or “4” accord-
ing to vehicle speed.
■ Shift ranges and their functions
● You can choose from 6 levels of engine braking force.
● A lower shift range will provide gr eater engine braking force than a
higher shift range, and the engi ne speed will also increase.■
Operation of the air conditioning system in Eco drive mode
Eco drive mode controls the heating/cooling operations and fan speed of the air
conditioning system to enhance fuel efficiency. (  P. 342, 350) To improve air con-
ditioning performance, adjust the fa n speed or turn off Eco drive mode. ■
Automatic return to normal driving mode
If snow mode or sport mode is selected , the driving mode will automatically return
to normal mode when the hybrid system is turned off.
■
S mode
●
When the shift range is “5” or lower, holding the shift lever toward “+” sets the
shift range to “6”.
●
To prevent the engine from over-revving, upshifting may automatically occur.

2192-3. Operating the light s and windshield wipers
2
When driving Turning on the high beam headlights
With the headlights on, push the
lever away from you to turn on
the high beams. Pull the lever toward you to the
center position to turn the high
beams off.
Pull the lever toward you to turn
on the high beams. Release the lever to turn them off.
You can flash the high beams with
the headlights on or off.■
Daytime running light system ●
To make your vehicle more visible to other drivers, the daytime running lights
turn on automatically whenever the hybrid system is started and the parking
brake is released. Daytime running lights are not designed for use at night.
Type A: Daytime running lights can be turned off by operating the switch.●
Compared to turning on th e headlights, the daytime running light system offers
greater durability and consumes less electricity, so it can help improve fuel
economy.■
Headlight control sensor
The sensor may not function properly if an
object is placed on the sensor, or anything
that blocks the sensor is affixed to the wind-
shield.
Doing so interferes with the sensor detecting
the level of ambient light and may cause the
automatic headlight system to malfunction.

2272-3. Operating the light s and windshield wipers
2
When driving ■
Raindrop sensor (vehicles with rain-sensing windshield wipers)
●
If the wiper switch is turned to the position while the “POWER” switch is
in ON mode, the wipers will operate once to show that AUTO mode is acti-
vated.●
When the sensor sensitivity ring is turn ed toward high while in AUTO mode, the
wipers will operate once to indicate that the sensor sensitivity is enhanced.●
If the temperature of the raindrop sensor is 194  F (90  C) or higher, or 5  F
(-15  C) or lower, automatic operation may not occur.
In this case, operate the wipers in any mode other than AUTO.■
If no windshield washer fluid sprays
Check that the washer nozzles are not blocked if there is washer fluid in the wind-
shield washer fluid reservoir.
CAUTION■
Caution regarding the use of windshield wipers in AUTO mode (vehicles with
rain-sensing windshield wipers)
The windshield wipers may operate unexpectedly if the sensor is touched or the
windshield is subject to vibration in AUTO mode. Take care that your fingers or any-
thing else do not become caugh t in the windshield wipers.
■
Caution regarding the use of washer fluid
When it is cold, do not use the washer fluid until the windshield becomes warm. The
fluid may freeze on the windshield and cause low visibility. This may lead to an acci-
dent, resulting in death or serious injury. ●
The raindrop sensor judges the amount
of raindrops.
An optical sensor is adopted. It may not
operate properly when sunlight from the
rising or setting of the sun intermittently
strikes the windshield, or if bugs etc. are
present on the windshield.

2282-3. Operating the lights and windshield wipers
NOTICE■
When the windshield is dry
Do not use the wipers, as they may damage the windshield.■
When the washer fluid tank is empty
Damage to the washer fluid pump may be caused if the lever is pulled toward you
and held continually. ■
When a nozzle becomes blocked
In this case, contact your Lexus dealer.
Do not try to clear it with a pin or other object. The nozzle will be damaged.

2342-4. Using other driving systems
■
Cruise control can be set when ●
The shift lever is in D or range 4 or higher of S has been selected. ●
Vehicle speed is above 25 mph (40 km/h). ■
Accelerating after setting the vehicle speed ●
The vehicle can be accelerated normally. After acceleration, the set speed
resumes.●
Even without canceling the cruise cont rol, the set speed can be increased by
first accelerating the vehicle to the desired speed and then pushing the lever
down to set the new speed.■
Automatic cruise control cancelation
Cruise control will stop maintaining the ve hicle speed in any of the following situa-
tions.
●
Actual vehicle speed falls more than approximately 10 mph (16 km/h) below the
preset vehicle speed.
At this time, the memorized set speed is not retained.
●
Actual vehicle speed is below approximately 25 mph (40 km/h).
●
VSC is activated.■ Canceling and resuming the constant speed control
Pulling the lever toward you
cancels the constant speed
control. The speed setting is also can-
celed when the brakes are
applied.
Pushing the lever up resumes
the constant speed control. Resuming is available when the
vehicle speed is more than
approximately 25 mph (40
km/h).

2352-4. Using other driving systems
2
When driving ■
If a warning message is shown on the multi-information display
Press the “ON-OFF” button once to deactiv ate the system, and then press the but-
ton again to reactivate the system.
If the cruise control speed cannot be set or if the cruise control cancels immediately
after being activated, there may be a malfun ction in the cruise control system. Have
the vehicle inspected by your Lexus dealer.
CAUTION■
To avoid operating the cruise control by mistake
Switch the cruise control off using the “ON-OFF” button when not in use.■
Situations unsuitable for cruise control
Do not use cruise control in any of the following situations.
Doing so may result in loss of control and could cause an accident resulting in death
or serious injury. ●
In heavy traffic●
On roads with sharp bends●
On winding roads●
On slippery roads, such as thos e covered with rain, ice or snow●
On steep hills
Vehicle speed may exceed the set speed when driving down a steep hill.●
When your vehicle is towing a trailer or during emergency towing

2392-4. Using other driving systems
2
When driving ■ Vehicle-to-vehicle distance settings
Select a distance from the tabl e below. Note that the distances
shown correspond to a vehicle sp eed of 50 mph (80 km/h). Vehi-
cle-to-vehicle distance increases/decreases in accordance with
vehicle speed.
■ Canceling and resuming the speed control
Pulling the lever toward you
cancels the cruise control. The speed setting is also can-
celed when the brakes are
applied.
Pushing the lever up resumes
the cruise control and returns
vehicle speed to the set
speed. Resuming is available when the
vehicle speed is more than
approximately 25 mph (40 km/h).Distance options Vehicle-to-vehicle distance
Long Approximately 164 f t. (50 m)
Medium Approximately 132 ft. (40 m)
Short Approximately 82 ft. (25 m)